Moments in Time
by Fae'sFlower
Summary: There are many precious moments in life, and Frexspar Thropp learns to appreciate every single one of them. Fiyeraba at the end. Oneshot.


**Yes, another oneshot. I got this idea while watching the new Travelers commercial, because it's so sweet and it made me cry.**

* * *

Melena Thropp smiled as she walked up the stairs to their new home; The Governor's mansion. She stepped up the stairs carefully, careful not to wake the sleeping baby in her arms.

"This is our new home, Fabala," she whispered softly as she opened the front door.

The sleeping, green infant slowly opened her eyes and stared up at her mother. Even though she was only a few days old, but Melena liked to pretend her daughter knew what she was talking about.

"It's much more spacious than that little, old cottage back in the Quadling Country," Melena smiled.

The baby made a noise.

Melena laughed. "I'm glad you agree. I'm so happy your father got the job as Governor of Munchkinland."

Frexspar Thropp came in soon after and stared at his wife and daughter. He watched as she walked around the mansion, speaking softly to the baby in her arms. In truth, he thought it was pointless. The green infant wasn't able to understand anything she was saying. She was less than a week old. All she did was sleep, cry, eat, and poop.

"What do you think, Elphaba? Are you going to like growing up here?" Melena asked, smiling as she gently jostled the baby in her arms.

Elphaba looked up at her mother and blinked. She stared at her for a moment before yawning and going back to sleep. Melena chuckled. She walked around the foyer, humming a soft lullaby before turning around and spotting her husband. "Oh, Frex. Could you take Elphaba for a moment while I go to the bathroom?"

Frex hesitated for a moment. He had never been alone with Elphaba. Before he had a chance to respond, Melena gently placed the green infant in his arms and hurried away. The new governor stiffened as he looked down at his daughter. Even though he had been a father for days, he never actually held her in his arms. He never wanted to. He didn't want to associate himself with the green thing.

Suddenly, Elphaba shifted slightly and her face contorted before she began whimpering. The new governor looked alarmed as he looked down at his now-crying daughter, not knowing what to do.

"Hush, Elphaba," he said in what he hoped was a soft, somewhat comforting voice. He knew she couldn't be hungry or wet because Melena had fed and changed her less than an hour ago. "It's okay. Everything's alright."

Elphaba continued crying and the new governor began to panic. _Where is Melena?_ he wondered. She was much better at this than he was. Truth be told, this was the first time he was holding his green daughter. Running out of options, he began to hum a song he heard Melena sing while she was pregnant. At first, he thought it was silly that Melena was singing to their unborn child, but he soon realized that singing would get her to calm down. Hopefully, it would still work.

He rocked her in his arms as he hummed the simple tune, praying to the Unnamed God that it would get her to stop crying. Sure enough, Elphaba's cries slowly died down to an occasional whimper. The Governor sighed in relief. He slowly met his daughter's gaze and realized, for the first time, that she had his mother's large, chocolate eyes. As he began to notice more of her features, he realized how much she actually looked like him. He had been very reluctant to do so, but now, he was actually beginning to see past her green skin.

"Hi, Elphaba," he said softly, gently adjusting the baby cap on her head to keep her warm.

Elphaba looked up at her father, content with studying his face. The Governor found himself smiling softly as he gently rocked Elphaba from side to side. The infant stayed awake for a few more minutes before yawning and slowly closing her eyes once more.

Unbeknownst to Frex, Melena was watching him from behind a corner. She grinned softly as she watched her husband finally get to know their daughter. She knew her plan would work.

* * *

 _Two Years Later…_

Frex clutched the cold, clammy hand of his now-late wife. He couldn't believe he had lost her. They were supposed to celebrate the birth of their second daughter together. And it was his entire fault that they weren't. It was his idea to have Melena chew milkflowers in order to avoid having another green child. Even though he had grown to love Elphaba for who she is, he didn't want to have another child born with her oddity. But his plan backfired on him. Instead, the milk flowers had caused Melena to go into labor too soon, and their new daughter, Nessarose, was born with tangled limbs that were supposed to be legs. She would never be able to walk and Melena would never wake up. A soft sob slipped past his lips as he brought Melena's hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. A weak cry pulled him from his thoughts and he turned, seeing Nessarose crying in the crib beside the bed. He slowly pushed himself up and walked over to the bed. He peered down at his new daughter before gently picking her up and cradling her against his chest.

"It's okay, Nessarose," he whispered, kissing her forehead. Pretty soon, Nessa was fast asleep and Frex handed her to the midwife. He walked to the door and took one last look at Melena before closing the door behind him. He hoped with all his heart that Elphaba wasn't awake. He would hate to have to tell her what had happened.

When he got to her door, he took a deep breath before slowly turning the knob. He was surprised to find Elphaba wide awake, sitting up in her bed, her teddy bear clutched tightly against her chest.

"Fabala, what are you doing up?" Frex asked as he slowly entered the room.

As he got closer, he noticed his two year old's tearstained face and her red, puffy eyes and he knew what had happened. Elphaba must have heard Melena's screams and it kept her awake. He gently sat down on the bed and scooped her into his arms. The green toddler slowly turned in her father's arms and buried her face in his chest. Frex couldn't find any words of comfort to offer, so instead, he repeatedly kissed her forehead and rocked her in his arms.

"I want Mama," Elphaba whispered, burying her face deeper into her father's chest.

"I'm so sorry, Fabala," Frex whispered, not knowing what else to say.

"Where's Mama?"

Frex only hugged his daughter tighter. He couldn't tell her what had happened. At least, not now. It was the middle of the night and they both had to get some sleep.

"Did she have the baby yet?" Elphaba asked softly.

"Yes, Fabala. She did," Frex said softly.

"Can I go see her?"

The Governor slowly shook his head. "Not now, Fabala."

"But I want Mama!"

Tears sprang back into Elphaba's eyes and Frex decided to tell her. She might not even understand, but he couldn't stand to see her cry without giving her an explanation. "Fabala," he said gently. "Mama died giving birth to your new sister."

Elphaba blinked. "Is she coming back?"

The Governor shook his head again. "No, Fabala. She isn't." He waited as the news sunk in and the tears in Elphaba's eyes slowly slid down her cheek. "She's never coming back."

"N-Never?" the green child sniffed.

"I'm sorry." The Governor felt helpless as his daughter cried against his chest. Her sobs woke a few of the maids, and they hurried to see what was wrong, but Frex sent them away. He sat there for a few more hours in the dark, cradling his daughter in his arms. As her sobs died down, he felt her breathing even out. He looked down and realized that she had cried herself to sleep. Careful not to wake her, he gently tucked her back into bed. He made to leave, but Elphaba's soft, subconscious whimpers called him back. He looked on her nightstand and saw the book of fairytales Melena had been reading to Elphaba. He picked it up and noticed the bookmark. She had never finished the book. Opening it to the bookmarked page, he began to read the last ten pages. When he finished, he looked up to see Elphaba sleeping peacefully, her thumb planted firmly in her mouth, and her teddy bear cradled against her chest. Smiling, the Governor closed the book and placed it back on the bookshelf. "Goodnight, Fabala," he whispered, kissing his daughter's forehead and slipping out of the room.

* * *

 _Five Years Later…_

Frex sat in the parlor, sipping a cup of tea. It was almost three o'clock, so Elphaba should be returning home from school any second. He heard the front door open and Elphaba's hurried footsteps in the hallway.

"How was school, Fabala?" he asked. When he didn't get a response, he stood up and walked into the hallway just in time to see the seven-year-old hurry up the stairs and close her bedroom door behind her. Worried, he followed her up the stairs and knocked on her door. "Elphaba?"

"Go away," came Elphaba's muffled voice.

"Fabala, what's wrong?" Frex asked as he slowly opened the door.

Elphaba was sitting on her bed, hugging her pillow to her chest. She turned away from her father as he entered the room. "Nothing."

"Elphaba, please talk to me. What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

Frex could tell that he wasn't going to get anything out of Elphaba at the moment, so he simply sighed and walked out of the room.

At dinner that night, Elphaba was oddly quiet. She was never much of a talker, but she was never dead silent. Five-year-old Nessa talked cheerfully about what she and her private tutor had done that day. Frex listened attentively, but half of his mind was focused on what was wrong with Elphaba. As soon as she finished eating, the green girl excused herself and went straight to her room. When Frex went up after her, he found that she had already gone to bed. He would just have to wait and find out later.

The next day, while Elphaba and Nessa were in Nessa's room playing, the doorbell rang. One of the maids answered it, and then entered the parlor, where Frex was.

"Governor, there's a Miss Katyie Hearst here to see you."

The Governor looked up from his paper. Miss Hearst was Elphaba's teacher. "Send her in." Whatever she wanted, it must have something to do with the way Elphaba was acting.

The maid nodded and curtsied as she hurried away to show the schoolteacher into the parlor.

"Hello, Governor Thropp," Miss Hearst said as she entered.

"Miss Hearst," Frex nodded as he gestured for the young woman to take a seat in the armchair across from him. "Would you like some tea?"

"Oh. Yes, thank you."

The governor nodded and poured the tea. "To what do I owe this visit?"

"Governor, I wish to speak to you about Elphaba. Something strange happened yesterday and a similar thing happened today," Miss Hearst said as she delicately took the teacup from the governor.

Frex nodded and waited for her to continue.

"Yesterday, during recess, a few of the boys in one of the upper grades started to bother Elphaba. She tried to walk away, but they surrounded her. One of them pushed her to the ground and they were about to start throwing rocks at her when the strangest thing happened. I couldn't see what really happened, but one second, the boys are standing over her, and the next, they were blasted back by what looked like a burst of magic. They weren't terribly injured, just a few cuts and bruises."

The governor blinked. Was she saying what he thought she was saying? "And what happened today?"

"A different group of older boys began taunting her at recess today. They were calling her names and one of them pulled her braid and snatched her glasses from her face. I couldn't fully hear what they were saying, but it sounded like they were calling her a 'witch'. That's when the burst of magic happened. Again, no one was hurt terribly. I tried to ask Elphaba about it, but she was too shaken up to talk. Governor Thropp, I think your daughter possesses magical abilities."

So _that's_ what had happened. That's why she didn't want to talk to him. But Elphaba? Magic? No one in his family possessed any magical powers. And as far as he knew, no one in Melena's family did, either. He had never seen Elphaba use magic before. "Thank you for informing me, Miss Hearst," Frex said as he stood up and showed the teacher to the door.

"Thank you, Governor Thropp," the schoolteachers said as she shook his hand and left.

Sighing, Frex made his way to Nessa's room and knocked on the door. He found Elphaba and Nessa in the middle of a tea party.

"Daddy!" Nessa smiled.

"Hello, girls," Frex smiled as he entered the room. "Elphaba, may I speak with you for a moment?"

The green girl didn't look very happy, but she nodded and followed her father out of the room. The two walked back to Elphaba's room and Frex closed the door behind them. He ushered Elphaba to her bed and sat down next to her. "Elphaba, what's going on in school?"

"Nothing, Daddy," Elphaba said, her gaze on her lap.

"Elphaba, look at me."

The green girl slowly met her father's gaze.

"Miss Hearst came by today and told me what happened."

Elphaba's eyes widened.

"Elphaba, why didn't you tell me?"

Elphaba looked down again and played with the hem of her skirt. "I don't know."

"Yes, you do know."

A single tear slid down Elphaba's cheek and she wiped it away. "I… I was afraid."

"Afraid of what?"

She wiped away another tear. "That you would be mad at me. That you would only see this as me being a bigger embarrassment."

"Who told you anything about being an embarrassment?"

Elphaba shrugged.

"Elphaba, answer the question."

"The older boys. They said that I'm an embarrassment because of my green skin, and now because of… of… this."

The Governor lifted Elphaba onto his lap and wiped away her tears. "Elphaba, you're not an embarrassment. Don't believe those boys. They don't know what they're talking about."

"I didn't mean to hurt them, Daddy. It was an accident," Elphaba said, trying to stop herself from crying. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Fabala. I'm not mad at you," Frex said gently, hugging her close. "You just need to be more careful from now on. We don't want anyone actually getting hurt."

Elphaba nodded and wiped away her final tear. "Okay. But… Daddy, am I a witch now?"

The Governor blinked. "A witch?"

Elphaba nodded. "They were calling me a witch. I don't want to be witch. Witches are old and mean and scary and…"

"You're not a witch, Fabala," Frex said softly. "You don't have to be a witch if you don't want to be. You can simply be you."

Elphaba's lips twitched into a small smile. "Okay."

Frex smiled and kissed her forehead. "Everything will be fine. I promise."

* * *

 _Six Years Later…_

Frex was beginning to notice a change in his now-teenage daughter. The thirteen year old was now avoiding him like the plague. Something was wrong, but he didn't know what it was or how to approach it. He could just ask her about it, but he knew she would push him away even more. He would have to be tactful if he wanted to get any information out of her. He asked Nessa, but the younger Thropp didn't seem to know what was wrong with her sister, so Frex was on his own.

One afternoon, he found Elphaba in the parlor, reading. He sat down in one of the armchairs and pretended to read his paper, but in reality, he was watching his daughter. He discovered that she wasn't really reading when she didn't turn the page after fifteen minutes.

"Is that a good book, Fabala?" he asked casually.

Elphaba jumped slightly and slowly nodded. "Yes."

Frex nodded. "Good." And that's all he got out of her.

Elphaba barely touched her dinner that night. She quickly excused herself and hurried away to her room. That's when the Governor decided that he had to figure out what was going on with his daughter.

"Elphaba?" he asked as he knocked on her door.

No response.

"Elphaba, please open up."

Still no response.

Sighing, Frex slowly opened the door and saw Elphaba curled in a fetal position on her bed. Her back was facing him and she seemed to be staring listlessly out the window. Tiptoeing into the room, the Governor gently placed his hand on his daughter's shoulder. The green girl stiffened, but didn't turn around to face her father.

"Elphaba, please tell me what's going on. You've become very distant lately. Did something happen?"

Elphaba was silent for a moment, and Frex wasn't even sure she would answer him. Finally, a faint "Yes" reached his ears.

"Was it someone at school?" Frex asked gently.

"No."

"Then what happened?"

Slowly, Elphaba sat up. "A few weeks ago, we were learning about… puberty… in health class. And we talked about…" She trailed off.

"Elphaba, what did you talk about?"

"… Periods."

"Okay," Frex said gently, still wondering what was bothering his daughter. "What did the teacher say?"

"It's not about what she said," Elphaba said, turning away. She squirmed slightly as she avoided her father's gaze. "I got mine," she said in a very soft whisper.

Frex inhaled softly. "When?"

"Yesterday. I had been feeling weird for a few days prior, and yesterday… it happened."

Now it all made sense to Frex. "Oh, Fabala. It's just another part of growing up. It means you're getting older." He paused for a moment. "How are you feeling?"

"Weird… and gross."

Frex smiled softly. "It's not gross, Fabala. It's natural."

Elphaba turned away. Frex could tell that this was a conversation Elphaba would have wanted to have with Melena. After all, it seemed to him like a conversation a mother would have with her daughter. But since Melena couldn't be there, it was all up to him. He reached over to hug Elphaba, but wasn't surprised when she pulled away. "Do you have any questions?"

Elphaba shook her head, but Frex could tell that a million questions were swimming around in her mind.

"Elphaba, I know this is a conversation you would prefer to have with your mother, but you shouldn't be afraid to ask me, too. You're a teenager now and this is only the beginning of changes you'll experience."

"It's embarrassing," Elphaba whispered, subconsciously wrapping her arms around herself.

"It's not embarrassing. It's natural. It's part of life."

"But it changes everything."

"But it doesn't change that fact that I love you. You know that, right?"

"Yes," Elphaba said, still refusing to meet her father's gaze.

The two talked for a bit longer, Frex telling Elphaba what he knew, making sure she had everything she needed, and answering her questions to the best of his ability.

"I know your mother would have explained this much better than I could, but I want you to know that I'll always be here for you if you want to talk," Frex said when they finished their conversation.

"I know," Elphaba said, wrapping her arms around her father and snuggling closer to him. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Fabala," Frex said as he placed a tender kiss in her hair. "Would you like some chocolate ice cream?"

Elphaba met her father's gaze and, smiling softly, nodded. The two stood and, hand-in-hand, made their way down to the kitchen. Frex knew that he would have to go through the exact same thing with Nessa, but he had a bit more time to prepare for that. Right now, Elphaba really needed his attention.

"And Elphaba?" he said as they walked down the steps.

"Yes?"

"I understand that you may feel awkward or uncomfortable talking to me about this, but I would really like it if you would tell me if something is on your mind, about this or anything else."

"I will, Father," Elphaba said, leaning against her father and smiling softly.

* * *

 _Eleven Years Later…_

Frex had been dreading this day. He couldn't believe that his little Fabala – who wasn't so little anymore– was getting married. When he found out that his eldest daughter was dating the scandalous Vinkun Prince, Fiyero Tigulaar, at Shiz, he was less than happy. But once he saw how much Elphaba loved him and he got to know him a bit, he softened up. He would never admit it out loud, but he actually liked his new son-in-law. He couldn't hate him, especially when he saw how much they loved each other, no matter how hard he tried (and he did try).

"Presenting Prince Fiyero Tigulaar and Princess Elphaba Tigulaar, Crown Prince and Princess of the Vinkus!" the herald said as the doors opened, revealing the new couple.

Everyone in the reception hall applauded as Fiyero and Elphaba walked in. Frex noticed the wide smile on his daughter's face as she looked at the man who had stolen her heart. He couldn't believe it. His daughter was now a princess. He watched as the two shared their first dance as husband and wife. Fiyero would occasionally whisper something into Elphaba's ear, and she would blush and whisper something back, causing him to chuckle. They kissed a few times, and Frex couldn't hide his smile, even though he tried.

Once the dance was over, Frex got up and joined Elphaba on the dance floor for the father-daughter dance. Elphaba smiled as she wrapped her arms around her father's neck and he placed his hands on her waist. The orchestra began to play and the two danced together.

"You look beautiful, Fabala," Frex smiled.

The green woman blushed. "Thank you, Father."

"I'm so proud of you, and I know your mother would be, too."

Elphaba smiled softly. "Thank you."

The two lapsed into a comfortable silence, and Frex took the time to study his daughter. She had grown up into a beautiful, young woman. He realized how much she looked like Melena, and not just because she was wearing her wedding dress. The dress was made of beautiful, white lace with see-through, long sleeves and a wide, mermaid-like skirt with a wrap design in the front. Her hair was styled in an elegant up-do bun with a few loose strands framing her face and a tiara in her hair.

"Father?" Elphaba asked. "What's wrong?"

Frex chuckled softly. "Nothing's wrong. It's just… you look a lot like her."

"Mama?"

The Governor nodded. "You're all grown up now. I'm very happy for you."

Elphaba smiled and leaned her head against her father's chest. Frex immediately responded by pulling her closer.

"Don't worry, Father. I'll always be your little Fabala," Elphaba whispered.

The Governor sniffled softly and gently tightened his grip around his daughter. Elphaba gently pulled away and wiped a stray tear from his cheek. "I love you, Father."

Frex took a moment to think back on all the moments in Elphaba's life, and how it all ultimately led up to this moment. "I love you, too, Fabala."

And to think, it all started with a simple, loving act of being a father and enjoying life's little moments.

* * *

 **Elphaba's wedding dress is on my blog.**


End file.
